A summer experience that will change a youth’s life. Una experiencia de verano que cambiará la vida de un joven

Danna Gonzalez working with students from the Pre-School Program.

When Puente hired three youth in 2007, we had no idea that almost 160 youth would participate in the program over eleven summers. Puente’s Youth Leadership and Employment Program has always reached beyond giving young people the chance to earn an hourly wage. It is about exposing them to the world of opportunities, building a vision for college, giving them marketable job skills, and improving their academic performance at school. Paid internships make Puente the largest youth employer on the South Coast. This year, 45 youth from Pescadero, La Honda, Loma Mar and San Gregorio have applied for the program. Throughout the years, Puente has worked with numerous organizations and partners to provide internships to youth. Last year Puente collaborated with 18 organizations to support youth, to name a few: Mid-Peninsula Animal Hospital, Sheppard Family Dentistry, the Computer History Museum, Claremont Automotive, and many more.

For many youth this is their first time applying for a job, going through an interview, and signing a job offer. Youth attend a weeklong orientation enriched with topics such as what to expect in the work place, professional attire and employer/employee expectations, CPR and First Aid certification, Mandated Child Abuse Reporter training as well as fieldtrips to workplaces. In the past, the group has visited Facebook, Google, San Mateo County Forensics Lab, Genentech, and much more.

Working with youth involves understanding their hopes and dreams, identifying their skills and strengths, supporting their willingness to learn, and providing the training and direct feedback necessary to help them build their skills. The internships serve as an insight to a future career option and it provides youth with a better understanding of prospective career choices. Sometimes youth discover that what they once perceived as their dream job may not necessarily be a right fit, and other times, youth discover a passion for an area they had yet to explore.

This is the commitment asked from our partner organizations. At Puente, we are grateful to the organizations and businesses accepting youth and providing them with wonderful learning experiences. Our partners make it possible for such a program to exist.

You can join Puente to support youth and their dreams and host an intern this summer. If you would like to support our Youth Leadership and Employment Program this summer please donate today.

If you would like more information about the program, or to offer an internship, please contact Education Director, Lizeth A. Hernandez at lhernandez@mypuente.org